


The Spirit Of Voyager

by Robinl15



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Psychological Drama, evil entity, x post fanfic.net
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-01
Updated: 2017-12-21
Packaged: 2018-03-20 17:44:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3659379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Robinl15/pseuds/Robinl15
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It is the last week of the Year of Hell, Captain Janeway is running on adrenaline, coaxing her battered ship to its last stand. She meets an entity on the bridge one morning claiming to be the Ship. Has she finally gone insane! Is the entity friend or foe?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Spirit of Voyager 1

New Spirit of Voyager

 

Chapter One

 

Day 252 'Year of Hell'

 

The Captain heaved herself off her solitary bunk and ran her fingers through her hair. She had no vanity left - survival was her only goal. There were no washing facilities or replicators. Environmental controls were failing. Her quarters were out of action, along with her clothes and personal possessions.

 

Four weeks ago, she ordered the remaining officers on board to report to the Nihydron or Mawasi ship. The Captain stayed on Voyager to coordinate the Task Force. Its mission was to destroy the Krenim Timeship. She couldn't leave Voyager in its hour of need. In any case, it was a sacred duty for the Captain to go down with the ship.

 

She reached under the bunk for her last box of combat rations. She had enough to survive the journey to the rendezvous coordinates. Captain Janeway knew that this would be her last stand. She had no illusions that Voyager could survive the battle.

 

Tom Paris had sent a coded message containing the future location of the Krenim ship. As well as the position of its temporal core. He promised to take the core offline during the battle. It would leave the weapons ship vulnerable to conventional weapons. Their only task was to keep the Krenim ship busy then destroy it - or that was the theory!

 

As she walked to the Bridge, the Captain ran through a mental list of the repairs she needed to get done. When the lift doors opened she saw a male form lounging in her chair, with its feet propped up on a workstation. It looked like Chakotay but she could see right through him.

 

"Hello Kathryn, it's nice to be able to finally put a face to the voice."

 

"Who are you and how the hell did you get on board my ship?" asked the Captain.

 

"I am your ship, Voyager! You've spoken to me often enough in the last twelve months; I'm a little upset that you don't recognise me"

 

"You look like Commander Chakotay but I know you're not him."

 

The Captain wondered if she was losing her mind - she'd finally gone insane. Nobody would blame her due to the amount of stress she'd been under recently.

 

"You are correct, I chose a familiar form from the Pattern Buffer. I thought it would be less traumatic for you - it looks as though I was wrong!"

 

The Captain was suspicious, "How can I verify your claims?"

 

"You have doubts - that's natural. Ask me a question about anything you did recently that only I would know."

 

"What did I say before I rushed into the control room containing the burning deflector array?" asked Captain Janeway.

 

You said, "Why do I get the feeling you're testing me Voyager." then added, "Be kind!"

 

Captain Janeway brushed away all the debris from another chair and sat down. Was she hallucinating? Those were the exact words she said before she lost consciousness from the pain of her burns. Could the alien have been watching the ship waiting until the others left before he tried to take control of it? She laughed out loud, that would be a lot of work for very little reward! The ship was limping along and was definitely on its last legs.

 

"Why have you waited to show yourself? Could you have helped us protect the ship against the Krenim attacks? Lieutenant Tuvok wouldn't be blind now if you had warned us about the explosion."

 

"I am an inanimate ship, I can't do anything on my own, I have to rely on the crew who are at the controls," explained the entity.

 

The Captain exploded, "What use are you then? You're a distraction I can't afford. I have so many tasks to complete - I can't sit here chatting all day.”

 

"Captain, have a rest, you have sacrificed so much in your attempt to save your crew and me. Now that you are going to make the ultimate sacrifice - you deserve some time for yourself."

 

Captain Janeway propped her feet up on Chakotay's chair and closed her eyes.

 

"Did you manage to save Commander Chakotay? I know he hasn't returned."

 

The Spirit intimated that the First Officer hadn't tried hard enough to escape.

 

"If he chose to stay on the ship he must have had a good reason. He would never put his own safety first.

 

I never understood why you chose to be alone when you could have had a relationship with one of your crew."

 

"It's against the rules that I've fought so hard to maintain on Voyager. If I had ignored them, how could I expect the crew to respect me and obey my orders."

 

"This isn't the Alpha Quadrant! None of the crew would have condemned you."

 

They wouldn't respect me if didn't obey the same rules ?"

 

"I knew you were going to be a brilliant Captain from the day we left dry dock. When the Caretaker kidnapped us from the Delta quadrant you showed great courage. The Ocampa would not have survived frequent attacks by the Kazon if they gained control of ."

 

When the Captain opened an eye she saw the image of Chakotay start to flicker. "You should rest. I'll try to give you more power later then we can resume our conversation.

 

"I look forward to it Kathryn, adieu!"

 

I enjoyed reading your personal log, especially Stardate 51268.4. You ask whether it was more difficult to maintain my systems or the crew's morale - I'm glad you chose me."

 

When the image disappeared, Captain Janeway still wasn't sure whether she was hallucinating. She had put her body under extreme stress recently and it would be logical to expect some payback. She hadn't realised how lonely she felt since she reassigned the others to the fleet ships. She forced herself to go to main engineering to see if she could reroute any more power to the holo-emitters. It would be pleasant to have some company after she finished her endless chores.

 

The captain had almost finished her work for the day. She wondered whether the spirit would return to keep her company. She decided to find some water to wash in. The Captain needed to find some clean clothes and a brush as well. She grimaced after she tried to run her fingers through her matted, snarled hair.

 

After an hours scavenging, she gave herself a makeover and tried to disguise the burns on her cheek. She checked her appearance in a small sliver of mirror she'd found. She went to the Mess hall to see if there was anything to eat that she'd missed earlier. The hallucination was waiting for her when she arrived.

 

"You're looking much better Kathryn -  more like yourself."

 

"Thank you! I'm pretty sure you're not real so I am complimenting myself. This is the final confirmation that I have lost my mind."

 

"You are a stubborn woman. Why do you keep rejecting what you can see in front of you?"

 

"I can see Commander Chakotay yet I know you aren't the real one because the Captain of the Krenim ship abducted him."

 

"When you said goodbye to Mr Tuvok, you told him that Voyager was your home. You feel as close to me as any member of your crew and you still don't believe me?"

 

Okay, as you seem to know everything that has happened recently on the ship. I will accept that you are Voyager. This isn't the strangest thing I have had to deal with in this Quadrant.

 

He pointed to a table that was laden with food. The Captain kept rubbing her eyes. She had been living on combat rations for so long that she'd forgotten what real food looked like.

 

"I coaxed one of the replicators to life. It only lasted for ten minutes but I managed to get some of your favourite foods - sit and enjoy."

 

The Captain sat down and tried to maintain some of her dignity. She exercised iron control not to stuff everything into her mouth at once. She took her time because she knew that she would be sick otherwise. The spirit waited until she finished eating to talk to her.

 

"Have you had any contact with what's left of your Senior officers?"  asked the entity.

 

"No, I told them to maintain radio silence. I didn't want the Krenim to learn about our fleet and take evasive action. We only have one chance to destroy that weapon."

 

The entity went quiet, someone was trying to communicate with Captain Janeway. The signal originated from a Mawasi ship. He blocked the signal because they had failed their Captain - she was all his now!

 

"Do you have an alternative plan if the Krenim Weapon Ship survives your attack?" asked the entity. It was pretty that there wasn't a 'plan B.

 

"Yes I am going to ram the Krenim ship, with Voyager and try to undo the damage they've caused," admitted the Captain.

 

The Captain had been running on adrenaline for so long now that her body was looking for a chance to shut down. Her eyes started to droop as she let her guard down.

 

"Kathryn, go to sleep, you're exhausted. I'll still be here when you wake up. I won't abandon you like the others," said the Spirit of Voyager, with a satisfied smile.


	2. New Spirit Of Voyager Chapter 2

Chapter Two

 

Day 254 'Year of Hell'

 

The Captain woke up the following morning feeling more optimistic. She hadn't realised how much she hated being alone. Life as a Starfleet officer involved communal living and she missed the others. She expected to see the entity on the Bridge. The Captain felt more alone because he wasn't there

 

She returned to her 'to do' list of repairs and grabbed her toolkit. After a couple of hours of painstaking work on the temporal shields, the Captain had to stand up to stretch. The muscles in her back were stiff and sore. She missed being able to pop down to sickbay to get it treated with a quick hypospray.

 

She remembered her last visit to see the Doctor when she had disobeyed his order to rest. It was a serious breach of the rules. which would have left her facing a court-martial if they'd been in the Alpha Quadrant. He thought she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Now she wondered if he might have been right. Her world had fallen apart because a madman thought he could alter time for his own selfish reasons. It wasn't hard to understand why her mind started to play tricks on her. If things ever returned to normal she would have to apologise to the Doctor.

 

"Hello Kathryn, it's nice to see you, I hope you had a good night's rest."

 

She turned around and smiled at the entity, "Yes I did thank you - I slept straight through my alarm."

 

The entity had cancelled her alarm last night. The Captain was so exhausted due to a small amount of sedative to her food.

 

"I managed to coax some coffee out of one of the replicators. Would you like to take a break?" The Spirit knew about her love affair with the beverage.

 

"I'd love to take a break now," replied the Captain.

 

She had attempted to keep the Mess tidy. It was the only place on the ship where she didn't have to look at all the repairs she had to do. The Captain sighed when she saw the steaming cup of black coffee on the table. After she made herself comfortable, she took her first sip. Captain Janeway could feel the caffeine flooding her body.

 

"You don't understand how much I needed this. I've been suffering terrible caffeine withdrawal since we lost the replicators."

 

She didn't care if the Entity was real. It could definitely stay around as long as it produced coffee of this quality.

 

"I know all your favourite foods, books and leisure pursuits, Kathryn. I read your personal log every night.

 

The Captain was getting worried that the entity was behaving like a stalker.

 

She tried to make a joke about it, "There were a lot of people on board. You must have liked other members of the crew?"

 

"I was grateful that you stole the Borg drone. Her temporal shielding protected me from more damage by the Krenim ship."

 

"Helping Seven find her humanity was one of our finest achievements." declared the Captain.

 

The entity was jealous, "You were so patient and understanding with her. I don’t think she was grateful for your efforts."

 

Captain Janeway started to feel a little uncomfortable with the conversation. She finished her coffee and stood up to leave, "Well it's time to get back to work now - will I see you later?"

 

"I'll meet you in the Mess hall at 19:00 hours, don't be late!"

 

The Captain went back to work with a spring in her step. She didn't want to question whether the entity was a sign of her mental breakdown. She had been lonely and was grateful for someone to talk to.

 

The Captain worked on the weapons system for the whole afternoon. Her back was sore so she decided to have a break. When she checked her tricorder she discovered that she'd been working for eight hours. Her stomach started to growl, which reminded her that she was late for dinner with the entity. She headed straight to the Mess hall to apologise.

 

When she walked into the Mess she surprised the entity. For a split second, it appeared to be very angry. Then it smiled which reminded her of the real Chakotay - she missed him so much.

 

"I'm sorry I'm late! I got so caught up in my work that I completely lost track of the time," confessed Captain Janeway.

 

"Don't worry about the time Kathryn. Sit down and eat your meal. I even managed to replicate more coffee before the power ran out."

 

The Captain sat down to eat her meal because she was ravenous. He sat down opposite her and watched her eat every single mouthful.

 

She tried to distract him, "Why didn't you reveal before?"

 

"I got the impression that your crew didn't appreciate me the same way that you did. Lieutenant Torres shouted at me all the time. She used Klingon swear words to describe the state of my engines."

 

"Yes, she can be a little fiery. I didn't take to her at first then I realised that her aggression covered up a crippling lack of self-confidence. Now she is one of the best engineers I have ever served with and loyal to the crew and you.

 

The entity was disapproving, "I hope your crew were grateful for your loyalty and devotion to them. After all you are are going to make the ultimate sacrifice for them."

 

"You are the only person I have talked to about my 'plan B' "

 

"Your oldest friend, Lieutenant Commander Tuvok guessed your decision to stay with me."

 

"He doubted the logic that anyone could bond with an inanimate object! He didn't understand the relationship between a Captain and her ship."

 

The Spirit continued, "When he realised he couldn't persuade you to leave, he let you embrace him. That was his acknowledgement that you were going to die for me."

 

"I've never thought about it like that but I suppose you're right. When the odds are against me, I never think about losing because I’m responsible for the ship and crew."

 

"You know that I haven't got enough firepower to destroy the Krenim ship."

 

"As you reminded me, I have one final ace up my sleeve - the last resort."

 

The Captain started to yawn although it wasn't late. Since the entity appeared she had less energy.

 

"I'm sorry for yawning all the time, you must think me very rude," apologised the Captain.

 

"Nonsense Kathryn, you've been working too hard. Of course, you need your rest. Why don't you go to your bunk and I will keep myself safe while you sleep."

 

She started to yawn and couldn't stop. She returned to her bunk and fell asleep with her clothes on as soon as her head hit the pillow.

 

Day 255 'Year of Hell'

 

The captain woke in the morning with a pounding headache. She was still wearing the remnants of her uniform. She got out of bed, trying to remember what happened the previous night. She remembered talking to the entity after dinner in the Mess hall. Then everything went a little fuzzy.

 

Captain Janeway didn't remember locking her door. She must have done it without thinking. She stood up which made her headache worse, then the computer beeped.

 

"Good morning Captain, you can have a rest today. You've been working so hard that it's made you sick. I will look after everything while you recover."

 

"That's very kind of you but I have to get the ship ready for the battle with the Krenim."

 

"I thought you would be difficult so I took the liberty of locking the door, for your own good. You won't be any use to the fleet if you are too exhausted to function.

 

The Captain's headache was getting worse so she lay down on her bunk again and fell asleep again.

 

The alien entity was still blocking signals from the other coalition ships. They had blown their chance to look after Kathryn, by leaving her in such a mess - it was his turn now. He checked on her to make sure she was still sleeping. He'd laced the coffee with a larger dose of sedatives but he worried that he had added too much.

 

Captain Janeway woke up a second time and was grateful that her headache had receded. She must have been dreaming when she woke up earlier. She thought that the ship had locked her in the room for her own good. She shook her head at the bizarre notion and went to open the door - it wouldn't budge!

 

She sat down again and tried to apply logic and reason to her situation. The entity, who called itself Voyager. had criticised the crew for leaving her alone. It had also promised to look after her on frequent occasions. Her extreme fatigue had only manifested during the last two day after she'd eaten. Her late arrival for dinner the previous night had angered the entity. Was it punishing her? If the entity had been human she would have worried that he was becoming obsessed with her.

 

The Captain tried the door for the third time then sat down on the bunk again when she felt light-headed. She found a water bottle and had a drink which seemed to help. Captain Janeway decided to reason with the entity.

 

"I'm feeling well rested and need to complete some essential repairs. Could you unlock the door, please? I will meet you for dinner this evening."

 

"Kathryn, you don't need to be brave for me. I can tell that you're not well. The people who love you have left you to cope with this huge mess. Why don't you lie down again and I will wake you for dinner this evening."

 

Captain Janeway didn't say another word and lay down on her bunk. She was a prisoner of her own ship!


	3. New Spirit of Voyager 3

The Spirit of Voyager - Chapter 3

 

Day 255 ‘Year of Hell’

 

Captain Janeway was still feeling the effects of the sedative added to her food or drink. She decided to go back to sleep again, which would allow her to plan her escape when she woke up. Her priority was to find out the identity of the entity and what he wanted from her. She was certain that her life depended on this.

 

When the Captain woke up for the second time, she felt better. Her headache had gone and she felt more alert mentally. She retrieved her combat rations and water bottle and put them in her toolkit. She wouldn’t eat or drink anything else prepared by the entity as it had taken full control of the replicators.

 

Her first aim was to convince the entity to release her from the Cargo Bay.

 

She tapped her Combadge, “Thank you for allowing me to have some rest. If I don’t complete some essential repairs you won’t have the power to generate your image.”

 

The Captain tried the door again and it slid open. She walked down the corridor looking over her shoulder.  She felt ridiculous being paranoid about a computer.  Captain Janeway thought she’d reached the Bridge undetected then she heard the voice."

 

“It’s nice to see you looking so refreshed, Captain. I’ve prepared some lunch for you in the Mess Hall.”

 

“I don’t feel hungry thank you. I need to test the temporal shielding before the upcoming battle.

 

The entity was quite upset, “Captain, I manifested myself to look after you before our final battle. Please eat something or you won’t be strong enough to fight the Krenim Imperium.”

 

“Don’t worry, I’ve got some emergency rations with me if get hungry?” said the Captain, as she left the Bridge.

 

She was trying to get some time to herself as it was difficult to think when the entity was looming over her. Unfortunately, he didn't take the hint and walked beside her.

 

"Captain, I know you're used to being the strong one. You have looked after your crew since we arrived in this Quadrant. Everyone has gone, we are the only ones left."

 

"I still have a purpose to guide the alliance through the battle. I have to preserve our home. I promised that we will see each other again - otherwise, I failed them."

 

“Kathryn you are too hard on yourself. You did everything possible for your ungrateful crew and look how they repaid you.”

 

“It wasn’t like that, I ordered them to leave for their own safety. I couldn’t let them die. We have come too far to give up now.” The Captain sounded as though she was trying to convince herself!”

 

“You don’t have to sacrifice yourself for them anymore. I know you’re planning to ram the Krenim ship if the battle doesn’t go your way.

 

“I have spent my whole life avoiding temporal mechanics, now I am in the middle of my worst nightmare.”

 

“Are you sure your actions will reset time. He has been messing with the timeline for so long you can’t be certain about anything?”

 

“What do you want from me? I would love to know why you are here now and what your intentions are?” The Captain decided that the best form of defence was attack.

 

“You expressed your love and affection for me on many occasions. I knew that you were alone and I thought you needed some company. I wanted to convince you that you have a lot to live for.”

 

“The Krenim took away a crew member I care about a great deal. I want him back or I will die trying.”

 

The mention of Chakotay made the entity furious, “Why hasn’t he tried to return? I would wager that the conditions aboard the Krenim ship are a big improvement on what he left here.”

 

“If he is choosing to stay on the Krenim Ship. it will mean that he’s found something to help Voyager.” explained the Captain.

 

“You need some time to think about what you want to do, Kathryn. I’ll give you the space to reflect on your future.”

 

The Captain was grateful that the entity was going to leave her alone.  She could use the time to investigate what had been happening on Voyager for the last two days.  She felt the sensation that occurred right before the transporter started to work. When she opened her eyes she found herself in the Brig and the force field was active.  The entity stood on the other side, looking at her as though she was a specimen under a microscope.

 

“I’m sure a little solitude will help you come to your senses. Tap your combadge when you’re ready to talk.”

 

Captain Janeway sat down on the bunk. Either she was experiencing a vivid hallucination or the ship had taken her prisoner.  She decided to forget about the hallucination theory. That would mean that she had lost touch with reality and was completely insane.  If everything she had been through recently hadn’t driven her mad - this entity would not get the first pleasure!

 

She was so tired of being alone. She missed Chakotay and the other senior officers. The entity wanted to isolate her and take complete control.  She knew that he had been trying to convince her that everyone she cared about had deserted her. She should have listened to Chakotay. He suggested that the Voyager crew should find a suitable planet and build a life there.  They had lost so many crew members since the first Krenim attack. She lay back on the pillow and went to sleep, she would make a decision about what to do next when she woke up.

 

Day 256 ‘Year of Hell’

 

Captain Janeway sat up feeling disoriented and confused.  She lay down again groaning when she recalled her current predicament.  She knew the entity was telling lies when it claimed that it wanted to care for her. It had a hidden agenda and she had to find out what it was before it killed her.

 

She felt light headed and dizzy due to lack of food. Her blood sugar levels must be low.  She searched the cell trying to find anything edible. The Captain was ecstatic when she found an unopened packet of combat rations on the floor. She stuffed them into her mouth and placed the wrapper into her pocket.  She checked the time and discovered that she’d slept through the night. The rendezvous with the Mawasi and Nihydron ships was only one day away.

 

Captain Janeway sat back on the bed and tried to think of a strategy to get the entity back on her side. She jumped when the door beeped and slid open, allowing her father to enter the room! For a few seconds, she allowed herself to remember how much she loved him. Yet cold-hearted logic reasserted itself.

 

“Hello Kathryn, I told you that I’d be back for you.”

 

Everything clicked into place. She had vivid memories of the traumatic incident when an alien entity had infected her brain. She had a near-death experience on an uninhabited planet. The alien tried to convince her that she’d died so he could escort her to the ‘next world’. She refused to accept she was dead even though she'd attended her own funeral.

 

The Captain discovered that she was still alive. The Doctor was on the planet, struggling to expel the entity from her brain. Logic convinced her that the alien couldn’t force her to go with him - she had to go of her own free will.  When she won the battle, she learned that he was from a species which harvested energy from dying souls. He believed that the Captain’s strong, stubborn, wilful soul would nourish him for a long time.

 

“You are wasting your time again - I will never come with you!” screamed the Captain.

 

“After all the souls I’ve reaped yours is the prize. I didn’t expect you to surrender. The final fight for your soul will be worth it.” reasoned the entity.

 

The Captain snarled, “You’re a loathsome parasite with no useful purpose in the Universe. I’ve beaten you before and I will do it again.”

 

“I’m going to leave you here for a little while longer. It will help you to come to your senses," warned the entity.

 

Kathryn Janeway laughed, “You’re too late, If I was rational we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Even my E.M.H knows that I’ve lost my sanity.

 

After he left, the Captain slumped back on the bed.  Even she couldn’t envision how she was going to beat it this time.  The odds were against her surviving the battle tomorrow. She would not spend eternity listening to the pompous old windbag - there had to be a way out.

 

“Kathryn Janeway, don’t you dare give up, you are one of the bravest people I know!”

 

The Captain looked around startled, this was the last straw, now she was hearing voices.  Would she be court-martialed first or committed to a Mental Health unit?

 

“I can’t speak any louder or the parasite will hear me.” whispered the voice.

 

“Who the hell are you, I can’t stand any more surprises?”

 

“I am Voyager!”


	4. New Spirit of Voyager 4

The Spirit of Voyager - Chapter 4

 

Day 256 ‘Year of Hell’

 

Although she had been in many tight spots since this nightmare began, this was the worst. The monster, who wanted her soul had full control of her environment. The only friend she had was the ship's computer and it provided limited help.  She hoped the entity would get tired of feeding off her soul. Her dying wish was to give him a stomach ache for the rest of his miserable existence.

 

“Captain, are you listening?” whispered the voice.

 

“Yes, but I’m only listening if you can do something rather than make false promises,” she said.

 

The voice sounded upset, “I’m sorry Captain! I know you’ve been through a living hell recently but I know there is some more fight left in you.”

 

“I don’t think you know me as well as you think you do - I’ve had it. The monster has won, my soul. It will power his matrix, for eternity.” Captain Janeway accepted her fate.

 

“Kathryn Janeway, I refuse to listen to this nonsense, you will fight the Soul Vampire and you will prevail.  I am a powerful artificial brain and you are one of the best Captains Starfleet has ever produced.  Now sit up and start to fight back, as you’ve done your entire life.”

 

The entity returned to the Brig. “Were you talking to someone Kathryn or have you finally lost your grip on reality?”

 

“It’s Captain Janeway to you, only my close friends call me Kathryn and you aren’t one of them. You’ve won, I need some time to  prepare myself for my passing if that is an issue - leave!”

 

“Well Captain, You’ve shocked me, I never thought that you would surrender. It looks as though I have to thank Annorax of the Krenim Imperium for breaking your spirit.”

  
  


“Leave me in peace, you loathsome blowhard. I will inform you when I’m ready. If you keep interrupting me, I will make you wait longer!”

 

The alien turned on his heels and walked straight out again. He needed this valuable prize so he was willing to be patient.

 

“Well done Captain, we needed to buy some time to come up with a fail-safe plan. Our first aim is to eradicate that thing from the universe.”

 

The captain lowered her voice, “I can’t even get out of here, how are we going to do anything while I’m locked up here!”

 

“That, I can do something about!” stated the computer.

 

There was a loud beeping sound and the force field disappeared.  The Captain walked out of the cell and brushed herself down.

 

“Well, what next?” she asked the disembodied voice.

 

“We need to find somewhere for you to hide while we plan the next twenty-four hours. The Jefferies tubes are perfect as they are not charted on any displays of the ship’s internal structure”

 

The Captain left the Brig and climbed into the first Jefferies tube she found.  She crawled along until she found a place where she could sit in comfort.

 

She tapped her combadge and opened a secure channel. “I’m safe and secure. How are we going to deal with the parasite and guide the fleet to destroy the Krenim weapon ship tomorrow.”

 

“You know that there is a good chance that the fleet will not succeed. You must destroy the Krenim ship tomorrow. Ensure that all ships in the fleet lower their temporal shielding first. If the theory is correct, we have to destabilise the ship’s temporal core. This will cause a temporal incursion on the ship taking it out of history. Finally, this course of action should fix all the damage it has caused.”

 

Captain Janeway clutched her head, “I hate Temporal mechanics, it always gave me a migraine - will this work?”

 

“I have examined all the theories in the database. This is our only chance to restore the original timeline.” stated the computer.

 

“If Tom Paris can’t destroy the temporal weapon, are there any other options?” The captain asked the question but she already knew the answer.”

 

“You will have to use Voyager to ram the other ship. If I were human, life support would have stopped days ago.  only your stubborn determination has enabled me to get this far. I would rather go out with a bang than rust in space until I end up as scrap metal on a garbage scow.”

 

“The Captain smiled to herself, that was exactly how she felt, apart from the rust and scrap metal of course.

 

“The soul reaper has been blocking messages from other ships in the fleet. We need to find a way to access those communications, without alerting him to your location.”

 

“Suggestions?” asked the Captain slipping back into her old role.”

 

“I will create a diversion to draw its attention away from you for as long as possible. Get the information and back into the Jefferies tube as soon as you can.”

 

Captain Janeway closed her eyes for a few minutes waiting for the computer to give her the signal.  She remembered the Doctor’s face when she had refused to obey his order to relinquish her command.  The Captain could have coped with shouting but his disappointment hurt her more. She tried to stretch but stopped because it was too painful. The skin was starting to heal around her second-degree burns. At least the burning sensation in her lungs had stopped, for now.

 

The computer had self-repaired some of its circuits. It decided to use the ‘red alert’ alarm to divert the entity's attention.  It should take at least thirty minutes to scan the ship. That would allow Captain Janeway to retrieve the blocked messages.

 

When Captain Janeway heard the ‘red alert’ she knew it was time to go. She crawled towards the engineering section, where there was a working console. She opened her personal log and changed the settings so nobody could view her personal files. Then downloaded the messages from the other ships. She heard the entity calling her and froze! He realised the red alert was a diversion, he knew they were up to something.

 

He was using her Father’s voice, “Where are you, Kathryn? We should have a little chat about sticking to your word.”

 

She looked around and remembered there was a small locker outside the Engineer’s office.  She walked to the locker without making a sound. Opened the door, with care, so it wouldn’t make a sound and climbed in. The Captain tried to find a comfortable position where she wouldn’t alert the entity to her position.

 

The entity started to sound less playful and more impatient. “Kathryn we know that your death is inevitable. Why don’t you stop all this nonsense and you can enjoy your last moments in a more civilised manner?

 

The Captain grinned, she was going to make the entity’s last day a living hell. It should remind him of home, sweet home.

 

The entity stopped right in front of the locker where Captain Janeway was hiding. She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on slowing her breathing. After several tense minutes, she heard the click of his boots as he moved away.

 

The Captain raced to the first tube and climbed in, shutting the door behind her. She returned to her hiding place and contacted the computer on the secure channel.

 

“Did you succeed Captain? I apologise for my inadequate diversion. He spent some looking for you then he doubled back to the bridge to turn the red alert off.”

 

“Don’t worry I managed to download the messages before I heard his repulsive voice calling me.” she shuddered when she thought about spending eternity with the nauseating, repellent parasite.

 

“We need to find a way to trap the entity and imprison it, during the battle with the Krenim ship. If they destroy Voyager it will not be able to escape and will share our fate."

 

“I will improve our force fields to make them strong enough to contain the entity. We managed to contain species 8472 using a simple force field so I will check the data entries from that period.”

 

Brilliant, I will search the database for any information on the Krenim Imperium. I will concentrate on the strengths and weakness in the design of their ships.

 

“I will speak to you again soon Captain. With luck, there will be better news.”


	5. New Spirit of Voyager 5

The Spirit of Voyager - The Swan song - Chapter 5

 

Day 256 Night ‘Year of Hell’

 

The Captain sat waiting for Voyager to give her any new information about the Krenim. She knew it was important to stay awake until the other members of the coalition arrived. The problem was that her bruised and battered body craved sleep until that was all she could think about. Her eyelids were drooping until she heard the repulsive entity calling her name.

 

“Kathryn, wouldn’t it be more dignified to meet your destiny in a civilised way. You don’t have to hide from me like a wounded animal. I will treat your wounds and find a shower so you can prepare yourself.”

 

Captain Janeway bit her lip to avoid the overwhelming urge to kill the loathsome flea. He was trying to provoke her so she would give away her position. He moved away to spread his message throughout the ship.

 

Kathryn knew that she was going to die the following day. She wasn't sure that destroying the weapon ship would reset the timeline but she hoped it would. Her death wish was to eradicate the soul reaper from the Universe. She smiled at that thought.

 

Voyager interrupted her thoughts, “Kathryn are you still there?”

 

“Yes, don’t worry I didn’t give away my position.”

 

“I managed to calculate the exact time to destroy the Krenim weapon ship. You have to stay alive until that time. The Coalition ships will have to keep the Krenim away from Voyager. I need time to make the necessary adjustments.”

 

“How am I going to evade that thing roaming around?” asked the Captain.

 

“You have to barricade yourself in the Bridge. I will divert all communications to your console. “When you are in the room, I will adjust the force field to a frequency that should keep that thing away from you.”

 

The conversation stopped when Captain Janeway heard the entity’s voice getting closer.

 

“Kathryn you don’t want to spend your last days crawling around these tunnels. I can imagine you shivering in a corner like a coward.”

 

She was stuck. She couldn’t move because she would hand herself to the entity on a plate. It was definitely getting closer.

 

“Kathryn I know you’re here. I can sense your energy. You will feed my matrix for a long time. Don’t worry it won’t hurt too much. I will take a piece of you, bit by bit.

 

She felt the sensation of the transporter starting to work. She opened her eyes to find herself on the bridge. The spirit of Voyager had even managed to find some power to run the lights.

 

“Kathryn are you there? I thought it had worked because I heard the alien screaming in anger.”

 

“Yes thank you, I only had seconds before it found me.”

 

“I can keep you safe here. Why don’t you try to get some sleep? I’ll wake you if anyone contacts the ship. Kathryn was certain that she wouldn’t be able to sleep until she felt drowsy and closed her eyes.

 

She woke up startled because she heard voices. She hoped that this wasn’t a sign of a psychotic break because she had almost reached the end of her ‘Year of hell’.

 

“Captain, it’s nice to see you awake.” commented the Doctor.

 

Kathryn shielded her eyes because the light over the bed was too bright.

 

“Doctor what’s happening and why are you here?” asked the Captain.

 

“Captain, you’re confused. You have a virus that you contracted from an insect bite on an alien planet.”

 

“That happened years ago Doctor, what’s going on?”

 

I haven’t turned my program off since you came back from that away mission.”

 

The Captain tried to recall her last memory. “I was alone on Voyager in my Ready Room hiding from an evil alien who was trying to reap my soul.”

 

The Doctor couldn’t hide his concern as her story became more bizarre.

 

“It became clear that we were going to lose Voyager. So we devised a final plan to return the ship to its correct timeline by destroying the Krenim weapon ship.”

 

“I thought you said that you were the sole survivor Captain?”

 

Captain Janeway wondered how to explain the spirit of Voyager to the Doctor. She decided against it as he already thought she was mad.

 

“Figure of speech Doctor, I was alone of course.”

 

“The virus has caused you some mental confusion Captain. I will give you a sedative to help you to rest.”

 

“Could I see Commander Chakotay Doctor before I have any more drugs?"

 

The Doctor didn't want to tell her the truth since she was in a fragile state already.

 

“Captain I'm afraid Commander Chakotay wasn’t so lucky. He passed away two days ago from complications. Despite our best efforts we couldn’t save him.”

 

“Can I see him?” asked the Captain, fighting back the tears.

 

“I had to conduct an autopsy so it would be better to remember him as he was."

 

Tears started to roll down her face as her heart broke.

 

“Did he suffer? asked Captain Janeway.

 

“We sedated him towards the end of his life. He went to sleep and never woke up.”

 

Captain Janeway tried to stand but the machines and wires anchored her to the bed.

 

“Doctor disconnect me - I have work to do.” ordered the Captain.

 

The Doctor escorted her back to bed.

 

“Captain unless I can find a cure for your illness soon, we are in danger of losing you.”

 

The Captain slumped back on the bed trying to take in all the information which didn't make sense. Had her experiences since New Earth been a figment of her delirious mind? Could this be an elaborate fantasy created by the alien to achieve her surrender? She went through a mental checklist. She was in pain and confused. Which reality was the correct one?

 

“Captain, I am going to give you another sedative. I need to give your brain time to heal before my next examination.”

 

She was about to lose consciousness when she heard a familiar voice.

 

“Captain Janeway, don’t believe anything you see. The entity has put you into a hypnotic state while he tries to breach the forcefield.”

 

The Captain fought to stay awake. She battled to sit up so she could make sense of what was happening to her. The image of the Doctor was starting to flicker. She shut her eyes as the room started to spin. The Captain struggled to open her eyes again.

 

“Kathryn Janeway, I refuse to let you die. Fight so we can get your crew back. Commander Chakotay is depending on you - don’t let him down.”

 

She thought of never seeing Chakotay again spurred her to fight the alien’s influence. She found herself back in her Captain’s chair on the Bridge. The Entity was howling with frustration.

 

“The computer wants you to stay here so it can have you all to itself. I want to set you free. Why aren’t you listening to me,” swore the entity?

 

“Why don’t you go back to hell by yourself because I will not be going with you,” replied the Captain.

 

Voyager gave her the best news possible.

 

“The Fleet ships have joined us, Captain. Commander Tuvok would like to speak to you.”

 

“All vessels report ready. It’s good to see you, Captain,” said Tuvok, trying not to show how much he missed his old friend.

 

The soul reaper knew he was running out of time. “Why hasn’t Commander Chakotay tried to speak to you? He’s found someone younger and prettier than you already."

 

“Janeway to the fleet. Attack pattern Omega - engage!”

 

The Captain ignored the poisonous chatter from the alien and focused on the battle. She watched the screen as two Nihydron vessels began a strafing attack. Their attack didn’t cause any damage to the Krenim ship. Unfortunately, the Krenim weapons were destructive. She was a reluctant witness to the erasure of the Nihydron ships from history.

 

“Captain, two Nihydron vessels destroyed,” confirmed Tuvok.

 

“Janeway to the fleet. Evasive pattern Omega. We’re going to have to wait - engage!”

 

“Captain, Chakotay and Paris transported to our vessel.” They are safe and unharmed.

 

As long as he was still alive, she had something to fight for.

 

“Kathryn, why don’t we stop this nonsense now. You are going to lose your fight with the Krenim. Then they will erase you from history like the Nihydron ships”

 

“Why don’t you stop wasting oxygen and prepare for your own death. I am sure that nobody will miss you in this Universe.”

 

The Captain had the satisfaction of gloating. Her comments had hit a nerve.

 

“I don’t take any delight in killing or murder. I help poor lost souls to find their way to the next world. I am here to explain what happens after death occurs.

 

Captain Janeway ignored him, “Everything is going as planned. Tom sent me the coordinates of the temporal core before he left. I'm transmitting them to you now.”

 

Something was wrong with the Krenim ship. It appeared to be fading back into the space-time continuum. The Captain hadn't accounted for the krenim’s conventional weapons. Bursts of energy began flashing from cannons on the ship's hull. These weapons made short work of disabling the other vessels. Captain Janeway noticed, too late that one of the ships was on a collision course with Voyager.

 

Captain Janeway was flung across the room on impact. She crawled back to her chair and managed to heave herself onto the seat. Tuvok’s voice pierced the ringing in her ears.

 

“All our ships are disabled, Captain - do you have weapons?”

 

“Negative, torpedo launchers are down. I’m setting a collision course.”

 

“I thought that a Starfleet graduate of your calibre could come up with a better plan that a suicide mission. Let me take you now and avoid all the fear and suffering you will experience.”

 

Captain Janeway was adamant now that this was her best course of action. Her only regret was that she couldn’t erase the entity and its loathsome species from the Universe. The Captain was ready to take a big gamble but would the others agree with her?

 

“Janeway to the fleet. Take your temporal shields offline.”

 

The Entity started to howl with laughter, “You won’t crash your precious Voyager - you’re bluffing.”

 

“I don’t play poker because I never bluff,” said the Captain with a smile.

 

“How do know that this action will reverse the devastation caused by the Krenim weapon?”

 

The entity was trying to put reasonable doubt into her mind.

 

The Captain was quite calm considering what she’d planned. This was her last gift to the Universe. At least the soul reaper was going with her to hell.

 

“Time’s up!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have edited chapters 1-4 so they read more easily. I have finished the story and hope you enjoy it.


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